November 13, Nairobi — El Fasher city, the capital of North Darfur state, could fall to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) at any time, a report released on Tuesday said.
The Humanitarian Research Lab at the Yale School of Public Health said that the RSF is advancing on multiple fronts and tightening their encirclement of El Fasher as it fights to takeover the city, which is the last stronghold of the Sudanese army in the region.
RSF combat advances are closing in from three directions: the 6th Division Airbase, the 6th Division Command in central El Fasher near the Grand Market and the southern axis of the B-26 Road.
Sources told Darfur24 on Tuesday that the RSF was able to reach the Grand Market after the army force stationed there withdrew. Videos circulating on social media showed RSF inside the market, with shops looted and vandalized.
At the same time, the report said that the displaced population in the nearby Zamzam camp for internally displaced persons (IDP) is increasing, and appears also to be expecting an RSF attack.
Meanwhile, the Sudanese army denied reports that the RSF had made advances in El Fasher and insisted the city remained under government control. An army spokesperson accused the RSF of spreading disinformation to sow panic among residents.
Shelling and Rape in El Fasher
Over the weekend and early this week, multiple reports came out of El Fasher detailing rape of young women and heavy shelling by the RSF on residential areas of the city and the livestock market.
As the fighting intensifies, people are also fleeing. On Sunday, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said that between just days last week, 7 and 9 November, an estimated 350 households were displaced from El Fasher.